Platform wars

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There is growing consensus that fully autonomous cars will become a reality by 2020. Google self-driving cars have driven over 1.2 million miles. Elon Musk, Tesla CEO, predicted in September 2015 that Tesla cars will have fully autonomous capability in 3 years. Zvi Aviram, CEO of MobileEye, a supplier of self-driving systems to many car makers, expects their technology will support fully autonomous driving by 2019.

Microsoft has finally raised the white flag in the battle for smartphone dominance. Microsoft announced that the company will be scaling down its mobile phone business it acquired from Nokia laying off 7,800 employees and writing off $7.6 billion (this is almost the entire value of the Nokia Devices and Service business minus the cash it came with).

How long will developers be loyal to ecosystems that seemingly set them up for failure? The odds are clearly stacked against developers as most of them struggle to make a living. The sustainability of co-creator ecosystems is in serious peril, it would seem. A look at other lottery-like industries provides an explanation, and a surprising perspective.

It’s abundantly clear from WWDC announcements that Apple is working hard to lock users into the system by combining devices into one seamless experience (PC, mobile, tablet, home, wearables). What many people might not realise is that Apple is fighting just as hard to lock in developers.

When Facebook was first listed on the stock exchange in 2012, investors were concerned. Had the company missed the mobile wave? 5 years after the launch of the iPhone, most of Facebook’s revenues still came from desktop. Zuckerberg’s team recovered. Today mobile already represents 60% of revenues, and Facebook is about to double down. Apps will become a central part of the social network’s monetisation of mobile. Stijn Schuermans shines a light on Facebook’s new mobile developer strategy.